Pats' game vs. Giants more important now

Tuesday

Aug 31, 2010 at 12:20 AMAug 31, 2010 at 2:26 AM

The fallout from the Patriots’ falling apart in their 36-35 preseason loss to the St. Louis Rams on Thursday continues.

While the offense’s failure to launch for much of the night hasn’t been overlooked, the defense has been hearing it from all corners for its lack of energy, effort and execution. That includes coach Bill Belichick, the one guy whose opinion matters the most around here.

“Yeah, it’s behind us,” linebacker Jerod Mayo said none-to-convincingly yesterday as the Patriots returned to practice on a hot and humid day at Gillette Stadium. “That’s why we’re out here now on this hot day in full pads. We’re out here each and every day trying to get better.

“We did get some humble pie (from Belichick) and we didn’t play like we were supposed to.”

The lowlights included allowing the Rams to convert on third down (11 for 17, 65 percent) and in the red zone (3 for 5, 60 percent). The performance added up to 30 first downs, 462 yards and nearly 44 minutes of time of possession against the defense, which was also flagged for six of the team’s seven penalties.

Linebackers Tully Banta-Cain, Brandon Spikes and Marques Murrell were all nailed for roughing the passer. Safety Patrick Chung and Banta-Cain were each nabbed for encroachment and cornerback Darius Butler got called for illegal contact.

“We just played dumb football,” Mayo said. “We had too many penalties and couldn’t get off the field on third down. That was the story of the game on the defensive side of the ball.”

The Patriots are already minus one defensive starter in veteran end Ty Warren, who underwent season-ending hip surgery earlier this month. Cornerback Leigh Bodden has seen his snaps limited over the last few weeks because of a knee injury, while rookie Jermaine Cunningham, who was making a bid for a starting job at outside linebacker, has yet to play in the preseason due to an unspecified injury.

Add in the fact that they’re integrating a number of young faces into the lineup — like Chung at safety, Spikes at inside linebacker, and Butler and Devon McCourty at cornerback — and it’s almost a wonder that the Patriots’ first-string defenders played as well as they did in wins over the Saints and Falcons.

Whether it was a bump in the road, as Mayo suggested, or a precursor to what lies ahead in the regular season, as many fans have worried, defensive lineman Mike Wright believes it’s important not to lose sight of the task in front of them.

“I think everybody needs to stay focused,” the sixth-year pro said. “Everybody needs to come out here every day and get better. Keep their head down and keep going. That’s what everybody needs to do.

“The season’s not here yet. We still have one more week to get better against the Giants and I think we’re all worried about that right now.”

The Patriots close out the preseason against the Giants on Thursday at the New Meadowlands Stadium. They open their regular season here against the Bengals Sept. 12.

The Patriots failed to name a defensive coordinator after the offseason departure of Dean Pees, who spent the final four of his six seasons in New England overseeing the defense. That would be a cause for concern just about anywhere but here.

After all, Belichick has his hands all over the team — be it on offense, defense or special teams — and linebackers coach Matt Patricia, the de facto DC, apparently has excelled at his new, title-lacking job.

“It’s been great,” Mayo said. “I mean, Coach Patricia has really stepped up as far as being a coach and as far as being a leader. I think last year it was more Xs and Os. This year, it’s Xs and Os but he’s motivating guys to get them going in the right direction. I think he’s doing a great job.”

As for anyone who thinks the Patriots’ coaches and players are willing to forgive and forget because the mistakes made against the Rams were in a preseason game, well, think again.

“Things that come up in these games, if you don’t get them fixed, they are going to come up again,” Belichick said. “There are certainly a lot of fundamental things that need to be addressed. Hand placement, footwork, leverage — all those type of things that we’ve said to them before and we are still in the stage where you need to keep repeating them and make sure that everybody understands.

“Any situation can be a little bit different or a different person (can be) involved, that kind of thing. There’s always fundamental coaching going on, but certainly at this time of year, you don’t want to gloss over it.”

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